Talk:Level 197/@comment-3225604-20131109092423/@comment-5306356-20131109162728
I finally got past this level, probably after around three dozen attempts. It helps on the mobile version that you can back out of a level if you haven't moved yet, thus you can wait for a board where you can unlock the bottom in your first couple of moves. Yes, the meringues aren't too bad. They are 4-layer meringues, but all those wrapped candy tend to leave them with 1-2 layers. Early on they can be frustrating as they block up the bottom half even after you detonate the wrapped candies, and if you have no moves left on the bottom you'll need to make another striped candy on the top. Once you clear out the top centre meringues it gets better. On most of my attempts I was able to clear most if not all of the meringue. However, getting at all the jelly can be really frustrating. There are six colours in a 4 high by 9 wide area, and there is no connection to the top half at all except through the middle column (the bottom half fills with new candies rather than candies from the top), meaning that while you work the bottom (particularly on the left and right ends), you have no control of what colours will fall in, no special candies falling in from the top, and no cascades on the top half to give you additional opportunities to make special candies (such as colour bombs). The new candies that fall in are totally random, and with 6 colours, odds are you'll get stuck more often than you get the colours you need, thus taking many attempts to pass the level. Things get really cramped near the corners, where you'll need a miracle to clear those spaces of jelly. Eventually you may get lucky and pass the level, but most of the time that area will get stuck, forcing you to move in the centre area in hopes of getting the end un-stuck, or worse, forcing you to move up top for another striped candy. Plus you need to do this on both the left and the right sides. Even if you get lucky and fully clear one side, if you don't clear the other it's all for naught. One tip is that, if you have multiple options on the bottom half, make a move that will make more moves available to you, and avoid moves that take away other choices for the next move. The latter is often not worth it even if it gives you a striped/wrapped candy, since if the board is stuck you won't even be able to use it. Colour bomb + striped candy is your friend. Try to get as many candies of the matching colour as you can, especially on the bottom half, before you set it off (but just be careful not to blow up your colour bomb prematurely with a cascade). When you set it off can determine its effectiveness. Early on it's less effective as you have fewer candies on the bottom, although the combo can still help clear out the meringues if you're otherwise stuck. Towards the middle of the round it can help take out the last few meringues and take care of a lot of jelly (this is what I did on my winning attempt), especially that corner jelly that's really annoying to clear otherwise. That will give you plenty of moves to tackle the few remaining jellies (although you still need to get lucky). If you get the combo towards the end it can either win the level or at least leave only a couple of jellies along with filling the board with new candies which may allow you to finish. Unfortunately, getting a colour bomb + striped on a 6-colour level with an unfriendly board layout is not easy at all. There is one part that's easy, though: the score. 80 000 points is trivial to get on a board with 36 double jellies and 12 wrapped candies in marmalade. Even 150 000 points for three stars is rather easy to attain on a good attempt (i.e. one that wins or comes close to winning). I'd say that, comparing it to level 147, this level should be Insanely Hard. Either that or 147 should be "Very Hard".